Gloria Loring talks about how "Friends and Lovers" was made into a hit: While listening to a version of the song sung by composer Jay Gruska and his wife Jennifer Williams, Loring recalled "That's a hit song if I ever heard one." After seeing Carl Anderson in a concert, she remarked "Oh, he's got a fabulous voice." Recording it as a duet, she said "The simple musical melody, very listenable, just lovely, combined with a lyric that's just classic. I'll be your friend and I'll be your lover, you can't top that." The song reached # 2 for 2 weeks on the pop chart, and # 1 on the adult contemporary chart.